Originally Posted by
genec
Three... two large vans a trailer with a large spool of wire, and a large truck with a lift boom... there were several workers working around large green boxes on the side of the road, and there were orange cones before the trucks which were clustered in one area. How many K rails did you pass?
How do you know how fast the motorists were actually driving? More importantly this whole issue is not about the motorists that saw me, but about the ones that did not see me... as in the descriptions that ILTB and joejack both alluded to. The reaction time of the motorists that were behind the forward motorists are the issue... Just like the motorist that pulls around the van that is just to your left... and thought the space you were occupying was empty.
Well, you're only 2' wide, so as long as the cars were not passing the trucks parked by less than 3' of clearance you'd have enough room to dodge even without having to stop in between trucks, in the highly unlikely event that it would ever come to that.
I do not count the k-rails. In construction zones there can be dozens interlocked into one solid wall for over a 1/2 mile or more.
I don't know how fast the motorists were actually driving, but by doing repeated mirror glances, I can estimate with good accuracy how soon it will be for them to reach me in terms of where I'll be by that time. And that's true whether they're going 25, 55 or 75.
While I can't tell if the 2nd (or 3rd motorist) sees me, I can see if the first motorist is slowing down or adjusting laterally, or not. In most cases he changes lanes well in time for the next motorist(s) to also notice me and change lanes, or, if the adjacent lane is full, they indicate they've noticed me by slowing down. That's what I look for. But I'm always prepared to be overlooked from behind, even though that has never even come close to happening. But in the unlikely event that it does, that's what the ditching plans are for, which apply regardless of the speed differentials, but do depend on the details of the particular situation.